Biography: Sarah Silverman

Emmy winner Sarah Silverman is as versatile of a performer as they come. Her repertoire includes everything from film and television, stand‐up comedy, to iconic online videos and she added author to this list when she released her first book last spring. Silverman was most recently seen starring in the third season of The Sarah Silverman Program, on Comedy Central and her New York Times bestselling book, The Bedwetter: Stories of Courage, Redemption, and Pee, was recently released in paperback.

Silverman was nominated for a 2009 Primetime Emmy in the Outstanding Actress in a Comedy Series category for her portrayal of a fictionalized version of herself in The Sarah Silverman Program. This marked Comedy Central’s first ever Emmy nomination in a scripted acting category. She also received a WGA nomination last year for her work on the show. Silverman won a Primetime Emmy in 2008 in the Outstanding Original Music and Lyrics category for her musical collaboration with Matt Damon. In addition, she was honored with a Best Actress Webby Award for her online video The Great Schlep, in which she persuaded young Jewish kids to encourage their grandparents in Florida to vote for President Obama prior to the 2008 election.

On the film side, Silverman appears in the comedy Peep World opposite Michael C. Hall and Rainn Wilson about a group of dysfunctional adult siblings who are fighting over a novel that one of them is writing, about the family. The film premiered at the 2010 Toronto International Film Festival and was released in theaters in 2011.

In 2004 Silverman made an impressive splash with her concert film, Sarah Silverman: Jesus is Magic. Directed by Liam Lynch, the film garnered major attention at the Toronto Film Festival and created huge national buzz. Silverman also garnered critical praise in the documentary feature, The Aristocrats in which 100 of the industry’s most prominent comedians tell a version of the same joke. Her other film credits include, Saint John of Las Vegas, I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With, School for Scoundrels, The School of Rock, There’s Something About Mary, The Way of The Gun, The Bachelor, and Say It Isn’t So.

Silverman co‐starred on the Fox comedy Greg the Bunny, and has guest starred in a slew of acclaimed and notable television shows such as Monk, which earned her an Emmy nomination in 2008 in the Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series category, The Larry Sanders Show, Seinfeld, and Mr. Show with Bob and David. Silverman also lent her voice to the Comedy Central show, Crank Yankers.

Silverman was dubbed “the most outrageously funny woman alive,” by Rolling Stone. With her comedic timing and stage presence it’s no surprise that Sarah has been asked to host major award shows. In 2007 she hosted the MTV Movie Awards and she has also twice hosted the Independent Spirit Awards.

Silverman grew up in New Hampshire and attended New York University. In 1993 she joined Saturday Night Live as a writer and feature performer and has not stopped working since.